Two clubs from outside the top five wealthy leagues reached the quarter finals last season but Benfica were drawn against another team from outside the big five, Zenit St Petersburg. Apoel Nicosia eliminated Lyon in the last 16 on penalties (we should be practicing penalties every week between now and then).
Two teams, Basel (who earlier eliminated Manchester United) and Bayer Leverkusen (who eliminated Valencia), lost seven goals in one game in the first knockout round last season. This tournament retains an ability to be harsh and unforgiving at every moment. Leverkusen actually conceded 10 to Barcelona over two games.
Apoel Nicosia conceded eight to Real Madrid in the quarters. The Cypriot team held things together for as long as they could but failed to reach group stage of the Europa League this season, going out at the hands of Neftchi Baku (Azerbaijan).
Our seven potential opponents, all from the top five leagues, will each present an enormously difficult challenge but some are easier than others. Our biggest advantage is our own position. Those seven clubs will each underestimate Celtic, we have by far the lowest coefficient of all teams left in the tournament.
Thanks for the great support for the CQN Annual. You can order online here!
We are enormously outgunned and inexperienced at this level but we know a few things:
We can defend under incredible pressure.
We can score, home and away, against anyone.
We cannot retain possession. This is not a good thing, but it is an acknowledged weakness, so we know not to plan to retain possession. If in doubt, laces through the ball and get into position.
Our opponents will know we have the tallest team in the competition. Height is an advantage until your opponent learns how you use it. During the first half on Wednesday Celtic tried to repeat the corner kick success we enjoyed against Barcelona and Benfica but Spartak had read the script. We will be unlikely to score the same goal again in Europe. A fresh plan is needed.
The Spartak goal is a real lesson. This is not a goal we would have conceded against a far superior Barcelona. We had a 1-0 lead and our entire left flank was exposed, compromising a winning position. We can leave our left flank exposed at Kilmarnock tomorrow but this kind of laissez-faire defending came within 8 minutes of eliminating us on Wednesday and will do so in the next round if repeated.
Penalty kicks determined the outcome of 50% of Champions League knockout ties last season (20% after games, 30% during games). No amount of practice is too much.
Planning for the quarter finals starts now.
The next issue of CQN Magazine will be out next week. If you would like to advertise get in touch, advert@cqnmagazine.co.uk.
[calameo code=00039017193b8a8bbd612 lang=en page=126 hidelinks=1 width=100% height=500]
1,417 Comments- Pages:
- «
- 1
- ...
- 9
- 10
- 11
- 12
- 13
- 14
- 15
- ...
- 38
- »
Valentine’s Day – so why are the CQN cliche fighting
The CQN cliche’s bark is worse than its bite.
Personally I avoid cliches like the plague. (thumbsup)
I remeber the 1972 shoot out when Facchetti stepped up and I asked my dad if he was any good.
“He takes them just like Big Gemmell” he replied. A sense of doom descended upon me.
valentine’s day
16:42 on7 December, 2012
Thats alright with Paul67 too.
But the moronic self appointed CQN bouncers disagree.
They are unable to scroll on by.
HH
Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo
If we get Bayern could we beat them? I really doubt we have that mentality, YET.
I think we would really struggle against that side and I hope they get knocked out in the next round. ;))
Jude
Get on google search and search for free adware
HH
Petec
I dont fancy our chances and I expect a Bayern Dortmund final ;-(
HH
When a pilot took unwell on a cross Atlantic flight to the US of A philvisreturns was first into the cockpit, where he took the controls and landed the plane safely at JFK airport.
Had a laff at all the huns on the Hotline slagging Sami for diving. The class one was “it was the softest pen he’d ever seen” Naw billy boy that goes to the one willie gullum never saw!!
canamalar – Ha!
Don’t be horrible to Philvis, he doesn’t avoid tax, he only evades tax. (thumbsup)
Awe_naw…,
I must admit I was very disappointed with his immediate transfer of allegiance and denial, I’m sure it was us who convinced him to stop financially supporting the deadco.
Awe
Will do. Ta o))
bournesouprecipe
16:48 on 7 December, 2012
When a pilot took unwell on a cross Atlantic flight to the US of A philvisreturns was first into the cockpit, where he took the controls and landed the plane safely at JFK airport.
______________________________________
And that could be a genuine fact or fiction question.
MSM you gotta love it.
Then there’s the ole clique that think there’s a clique.
Mon the Hoops
philvis – you can throw the cliches out till the cows come home.
And turn them on and off like a tap.
I’m reminded of the time Rick states the oft quoted (Like right now? Ed) (Like right now doofus!) line
– Look at us. Bickering. Fighting. We never used to be like this…
– Yes we did!
Replies Vyvyan
I see some are wondering about how to strengthen our team. I would try and sign up Hooper and Wanyama (and I know that might not happen) but I would be more anxious to try and sign an old fashioned inside forward; someone capable of making the incisive pass that breaks down 10 men defences. I don’t think any of the young Scottish players mentioned as signing targets have that ability; we’re probably looking for an old experienced player a la Lubo. Is there such a player around, who is not cuptied? He might just be worth his weight in gold for us. (As was said earlier, I do expect us to go beyond the last 16: we have the basis of a good team but we lack an auldheid, who can distribute the killer pass).
Deniabhoy & Mort are dead right about all our players practising penalties every day. We may need to rely on that.
bournesouprecipe – Strange but true: the Peter Capaldi movie “Soft Top, Hard Shoulder” was based on the adventures of young Philvis. (thumbsup)
By Jings…!
Bold Canamalar Will Be Combing His Bijou Partick Garrett….
For Hidden Cameras And Listening Devices…..
Transmitting ‘Live Feed’ Back To The ‘Nimble’……
He Had So Much More Privacy……
When He Lived In That Cage With All His Furry Pals……
At Calderpark Zoo…Back In The Dae…
Right..? Right..?
Still….Laughin’….
petec
Bring on the Germans by the score
Parkheadcumsalford
Milan Badelj is your man.
Interesting article from ‘twohundredpercent.net’:
THE UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: So, how lucky were Celtic?
As slightly cumbersome Celtic centre-back Efie Ambrose got another indeterminate body part in the way of another intricate Barcelona passing move, my shredded nerves were joined by an extra sense of unease, as I thought of Chelsea. Celtic’s rearguard action in the Nou Camp on October 23rd was almost universally praised and manager Neil Lennon’s team were deemed heart-breakingly unlucky to lose in the 94th-minute. But even then, I found it impossible to entirely concur. It wasn’t just because I didn’t think Celtic kept the ball well enough on the nine or so occasions they got possession (striker Gary Hooper miscontrolled one pass simply because he momentarily failed to recognise the round thing hurtling towards him, not having seen it for so long).
It was also because I had derided Chelsea as “lucky” and unworthy when they used the self-same “backs-to-the-wall” tactics to win their Champions League semi-final in the same stadium just six months previously. And I derided them as luckier and less worthy when they repeated the “trick” to become the unlikeliest of European club champions in the Munich final 26 days after that. Chelsea received unkinder reviews because they had the talent to play an altogether more expansive game and chose not to; and because they are more generally disliked for any number of other reasons (which would take a whole article to detail). But they overcame Barca having been a goal and a man down after John Terry’s rush of blood to the head (or normal thought process, depending on your view of Chelsea’s captain).
So I couldn’t justify these double standards. They were simply borne of my feelings for Celtic and my equally strong feelings against Chelsea (the latter of which I would happily take a whole article to detail). That said, I believe I would have derided teams about which I was neutral as “lucky” if they had beaten Napoli, Benfica and Barcelona as Chelsea did. And I admit that when pondering the question “Were Celtic lucky?” to qualify for the last 16 of the Champions League (annoyingly referred to as “the super-16” by one Sky TV commentator), a lot of images sprang to mind. For there was no doubt that Celtic’s “miracle” (copyright: one Neil Lennon) contained plenty of the stuff. One piece of “luck” might be in my opinion alone; a nagging feeling that Celtic’s late loss in the Nou Camp gave them that extra tiny edge to see Barca off at Celtic Park. A draw in the Nou Camp and Celtic may have been less driven to right a wrong – even a perceived one such as Jordi Alba’s winner in Catalonia.
But leaving that aside, there were some genuine pieces of luck on the night, not least Alexis Sanchez’s first-half header spinning towards outside of the post like a well-flighted off-break (from left to right, for cricket non-aficionados) when a straight delivery might have sent the ball into the net off the post (Benfica were similarly unlucky with one of their many Nou Camp chances). Fraser Forster was magnificent in goal that night. But he was some yards from Sanchez’s header, praying like the rest of us, for a bit of turn. His, and our, prayers were answered. It could also be argued that Celtic’s goal in the Nou Camp was not only a fluky deflection off an unprepared Javier Mascherano but also offside. Celtic’s win in Moscow was strongly aided by Juan Insaurralde’s dismissal for denying Hooper a clear goalscoring opportunity. At the time, Celtic were fast entering plucky territory; two-one down and not really looking like fashioning a chance. And whilst they were not being over-run either, a point looked unlikely, victory unlikelier still.
From then on, though, Spartak’s fragile confidence became more influential. A “what we have we hold” mentality gripped them. And what they had they couldn’t hold. Celtic also got the best of the Moscow weather. From the moment the draw was made, wintry Russian conditions were cited as a potential obstacle to progress, even for players plying their trade in hardly-tropical Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dundee or Inverness, let alone the Iberian-based sun-worshippers. Celtic played there first, in September rather than November, saving considerable expense on gloves. By the time Benfica got there, it was cold and dank across virtually all of Northern Europe. And Celtic also benefitted from Spartak’s ability to at least be inconsistent, which gave them a 2-1 victory over the Lisbon team, and, it transpired, their only points.
Celtic also had reason to be grateful for Benfica’s reluctance to take full advantage of hooped nerves and push for victory at Parkhead in the group’s opener. Until Victor Wanyama and Scott Brown found their Champions League feet in the second half, Celtic might have crumbled under any Benfica intensity. It never arrived. Lucky that. But Benfica’s major contribution to Celtic’s triumph, having failed to gift Celtic a point in Lisbon through non-league defending at setpieces, was their finishing in the Nou Camp, against Barca’s almost genuine ‘B’ team (Carles Planas, anybody?). When Sky TV commentator Ian Crocker said Benfica were “having the better of it,” he wasn’t wrong. Benfica striker Rodrigo looked every inch a Bolton Wanderers reject when missing an early sitter. And Barca’s defensive reserves looked, remarkably, more inept than their first-team rearguard.
If a central defence is weakened by Javier Mascherano’s absence, Ray Winstone will NOT be asking you, during the half-time interval, to “have a bang on” a 0-0 draw. Yet, 0-0 it was. And Barca could have even nicked it with a late penalty if Benfica keeper Artur’s knee-bruising lunge on Lionel Messi had been punished appropriately. Luck of the night, though, was Celtic’s penalty. Yes, I’ve “seen them given.” Yes, it “would have been a free-kick anywhere else on the pitch.” Probably. But when Georgios Samaras tumbled, I looked at the referee way more in hope than expectation. And if you listened carefully to my cry of “yesss” when he pointed the spot, then, yes, that was a hint of laughter you heard too. And if we are talking about lucky goals, how many teams win TWO games 2-1, thanks to one of the goals coming from an air-shot by an opposition player at just the wrong/right moment? Not only Spartak’s Insaurralde but also Barcelona’s Xavi, or, to give him what I then discovered is his full name, “Xavi Hernandez of all people.”
So. Were Celtic lucky? Well, yes, though not as lucky as knocking Benfica out in 1969…on the TOSS…OF…A…COIN. Were they JUST lucky? Well, no. Had Tony Watt equalised late on in Lisbon, Celtic would have qualified from the group stages with a game left. And you don’t do that just by luck. Benfica were timid at Parkhead, yet Celtic were worth a point. All three Celtic goals in Moscow were excellent – Hooper’s opener a classic breakaway with an international-class finish. Celtic relied on a form of anti-football against Barcelona, but all three of Barca’s goals came in stoppage time. If Messi fails to break Gerd Muller’s goalscoring record for a calendar year, it will be as much down to Celtic holding him to one goal in three hours (plus stoppage time) as any games he might miss through injury. And amid the euphoria of the Celtic Park result, Celtic being without their captain, their top scorer, their winning goalscorer in Moscow and arguably their most skilful player was nearly forgotten.
In Lisbon, Celtic simply weren’t very good and paid the full price – their defeat meaning that finishing “ahead” of Benfica on goals scored would not have been enough, thanks to Uefa’s “head-to-head” rule which prioritises matches between the level teams ahead of goal difference. Just ask Chelsea about that. (Benfica’s Rodrigo Lima said “it would be better for the Champions League if Benfica were to progress.” He might want reminding that Celtic would have finished “ahead” of Benfica on GOALS SCORED, unless Benfica had grabbed five, i.e. taken all their good chances, at the Nou Camp). But on the decisive night, Celtic were good enough. Through the shredded nerves, it was just possible to note that Celtic dominated the second half, having been jolted out of their first-half nerves by Spartak’s equaliser.
Celtic defenders kept bouncing off Spartak’s Nigerian striker Emmanuel Emineke, but he created few chances…none at all after half-time. Celtic ended the night with more efforts on goal and more on target. Most Celtic players found their creative spark – Samaras (and not just in the way he ‘created’ the penalty), Brown, Mikael Lustig, Ambrose (bringing the ball out of his own penalty area like Alan Hansen at his imperious best). And some might even suggest that Aiden McGeady’s late cameo as a Spartak sub was one of his best-ever Celtic displays. It was certainly indicative of Celtic’s display that Hooper should end proceedings with a defensive clearance from the left-back position. Celtic’s achievement also needs contextualising. Since their last Champions League group appearance, Scottish club football has declined alarmingly. The loss of TV revenue caused by the 2009 financial collapse of Setanta UK impacted strongly on wages. And there was, unsurprisingly, a comparable impact on quality.
It may only have been five years since Celtic beat Milan at Celtic Park. But it seemed lifetimes away as Celtic’s European fortunes plummeted. Defeat to Arsenal in the 2009 play-offs was more comprehensive than the 5-1 aggregate suggested; while Celtic subsequently failed to hold their own against even mid-ranking sides. History has been kinder to their 2010 defeat in Braga, who reached that season’s Europa League final, than to embarrassing reverses in Utrecht and, only last year, Sion. And after Celtic were gifted a Europa League group place by Sion’s multiple disregard for a Fifa transfer embargo, there was genuine fear that they would be embarrassed by opponents such as Atletico Madrid and Udinese. The Spaniards beat Celtic twice, at a canter, although history put those defeats in a kinder context as Atleti won the final at a canter too. And, to both the relief and surprise of many, Celtic won one and drew their other three games. The point in Udine in the last match was the strongest hint that Lennon was building a credible, if hardly top-rank European outfit. But it is still a quantum leap from that day to this.
How far can Celtic go? Many fans unenamoured with Celtic and/or the Old Firm have sneered that they will go no further, keen as they are to begrudge Celtic their success (more understandably, I’m sure fans of many clubs find it difficult to appreciate the irony of Celtic being cast in the role of financial underdog, seeing off their ”big money” group opponents). However, that is a more realistic assessment than Celtic having “to fear no-one because they beat Barcelona.” Even Malaga, possibly the next weakest team in the last 16, might have something to say about that. Past Champions League performances are no guide to future success. Just ask Chelsea. It would take much more than luck, grit and inspired displays from Wanyama, Brown, Samaras and Hooper to see off Borussia Dortmund, or Juventus, or even Manchester United’s defence, which is currently filling the hole in kids’ lives left by the demise of the Dandy comic.
That, though, is for February. For now, Celtic fans have some glory in which to bask. While Scottish football has some extra co-efficient points to tot up (which I’m sure Rangers fans will appreciate in the future) and some added credibility, if only by association for now. And if you still think Celtic were just “lucky” to reach the last 16, just remember that they got ten from six games and would have been desperately unlucky to finish third in a group of four with those ten points. Just ask Chelsea.
WGS,
Is h available? Who does he play for? Can’t say I’ve heard of him.
bournesouprecipe
16:48 on
7 December, 2012
When a pilot took unwell on a cross Atlantic flight to the US of A philvisreturns was first into the cockpit, where he took the controls and landed the plane safely at JFK airport.
He was the only flight attendant who wasn’t wearing a skirt.
What a life he has
Canamalar
Deep rooted primeval behaviour is not easily reconciled.
Why are you disappointed ?
I would categorise that decision unter the instinctive section
Remember Fergus stating that Celtic represents our identity
Well Sevco represents their identity.
And it is right and fitting.
HH
Should we ever be involved in a penalty shoot-out in the CL I would be confident of ‘the Wall’ saving a couple of them…. but not too confident of all 5 designated penalty takers scoring!
C’mon Neil – extra penalty taking practise between now and February/March!
HH!!
kilbowie kelt
>>>>
Quite a story about your old friend.
HH.
PeteTheBeat – philvis – you can throw the cliches out till the cows come home.
I’m not being funny, but at the end of the day it goes without saying. (thumbsup)
Ole Sammi was the mostest fouled player on Wednesday night.
Stats CSC
Can I Have Raspberry On That Champions League Ice Cream – He was the only flight attendant who wasn’t wearing a skirt.
How do you know I wasn’t wearing a skirt? (thumbsup)
Awe
Thers a lot there. Ad-Aware is that it?
You were joining the mile high club at the time.
philvisreturns
17:01 on 7 December, 2012
Can I Have Raspberry On That Champions League Ice Cream – He was the only flight attendant who wasn’t wearing a skirt.
How do you know I wasn’t wearing a skirt? (thumbsup)
You were joining the mile high club at the time.
Parkheadcumsalford
16:52 on 7 December, 2012
Neil expects both to sign on longer. I’m hoping both will do just that.
Regarding penalties, we definitely need a new kicker who is totally detached from the energised bunies that we all are. ;)) especially me hehe
Kris wullnae be taking the most crucial penalties next Spring time IMO.
I would have Efe, once he is fully settled in, taking every spot kick, unless we have an even cooler person by then.
Wednesday night, if we had Victor available, we could have swapped Victor and Efe to counter act the main threat.
I love the interchangability of Neil’s teams.
Ajax anyone?
Can I Have Raspberry On That Champions League Ice Cream – Quentin, is that you? (thumbsup)
Ole Rugby Park is the home of the best ever COYBIG song fest, in Celtic history.
philvisreturns
17:04 on
7 December, 2012
Can I Have Raspberry On That Champions League Ice Cream – Quentin, is that you? (thumbsup)
I’m afraid no darling ;-)
A mile high is only 5280 ft at which altitude the plane would be ascending or descending and the seat belt lights firmly on..
It should really be called the six mile high club.
Pedantic CSC
Jude2005
http://1skyliner.com/2010/11/7-best-free-adware-removal-programs/
Make yer mind up time
HH